Faruk Ahmed Enis – BUS 332 Midterm

1)

a) Attributes of transactions are uncertainty, frequency and asset specifity.

Uncertainty means changes that organizations cannot predict or control in the environment in
which they operate. Bounded rationality implies that individuals or organizations are limited
to environmental uncertainty in the process of gathering, evaluating and making the right
decision for the process. So, uncertainty can affect firms’ buying behavior in terms of supplier
relations. In the case of uncertainty such as Covid-19 period, firms can arrange their contracts
with suppliers and this can increase transaction costs. If there is uncertainty, firms can choose
vertically integrated strategy to manage their make buy decisions.

On the other hand, the effect of frequency on transaction cost is very strong. It is unlikely that
a company will produce a product or service that it seldom uses. For example, many
companies do not establish their own management consultancy departments because they are
not used frequently. If a firm decides to set up its own consulting service, it has to try to be a
service seller to others when it does not serve its own firm. If frequency is very low, then
firms should not choose vertical integration.

Asset specificity implies that assets can be transferred for alternative uses. Where assets are
specific, they have very little value other than the relevant transaction. In situations that
require such specific assets, suppliers can act opportunistically by paying excessive rents to
customers. This can be avoided with detailed contracts or other protection methods, but
preparing a detailed contract and other safeguards can also incur additional costs. If assets are
valuable, firms can choose making decision, if assets are not valuable, firms can choose
buying from outside vendors.

b) WQT should not outsource, it make its own books, because writing division is core and
entire business of the company, if the company outsource, it can increase its resource
dependency much. And in the case of uncertainty, the firm may suffer from suppliers of
writing (authors). Additionally, the inner writers of the company know the supply chain and
deadlines of the books, so there is no problem in terms of supply chain. In terms of protection
of books with copyrights, in-house writers are confident and they protect the IRP of books. In
this context, WQT should choose making decision, not outsourced.
2)

As we all know know, companies are responsible primarily for their partners/shareholders,
then their employees and other environments (customers, suppliers, etc.) with whom they are
involved as we call it stakeholders. With an understanding of corporate governance,
companies can increase the value of the shares held by their partners, increasing their
efficiency in the awareness of their own responsibilities, and in this process, their relations
with all the people and organizations they deal with can be carried out in accordance with the
laws and moral values.

Protection of shareholder rights is first and I think most important principle. Basic
shareholders’ rights, according to this CG principle, these include the registration of property
rights, the transfer of shares, timely and regular information about the company, participation
and voting at the general assembly, election of management / supervisory boards and taking
dividends.

Equal treatment of shareholders- All shareholders in the same class, including minority
shares and foreign shareholders, should be treated equally. The shareholder should be able to
obtain information about the right to vote before they receive the stock, and in changes related
to this right, they should be able to vote in person or by proxy in line with their interests. The
general assembly procedure should not make it difficult for the shareholder to vote. Insider
information and manipulative movements should be banned, and members of the board of
directors and other executives should be provided with explanations about important
transactions.

Role of stakeholders- Stakeholder rights (Employees, Suppliers, etc.) who have a relationship
with the company should be recognized by law, encouraging cooperation between these
groups and the company in order to increase employment and prosperity and create a
financially sound company.

Public disclosure and transparency - Timely and accurate information should be provided on
all matters relating to the company, including matters relating to the company's financial
position, performance, ownership and management.

Duties and responsibilities of the board of directors: Strategic direction of the company,
effective supervision of the board of directors on the company and accountability of the board
of directors should be guaranteed.
For instance, if we look at Turk Traktor’s CG ratings applied by SAHA, while there is no
upper limit on the voting rights of the shareholders under the title of Shareholders, the
presence of the investor relations unit, an effective general assembly in both form and
practice, and the establishment of a profit distribution policy stand out as positive points.

The initiative of the Treasury and Investor Relations unit is an indicator of the company's
sensitivity on the issue and future improvements. Türk Traktor makes an effort far above the
country average in terms of Public Disclosure and Transparency. There is a comprehensive
website with the information and documents specified in the Corporate Governance Principles
on Public Disclosure, and important events and developments that need to be disclosed to the
public using almost any communication opportunity fully comply with the Capital Market
Law and the ISE legislation. The company has largely complied with the Capital Markets
Board's “Corporate Governance Principles” under the Stakeholders head, especially in the
areas of company policy, protection of company assets, human resources policy, and relations
with customers and suppliers. In reaching this positive result; observing that the rights of the
stakeholders are protected both within the framework of the laws and the rules of good faith
and within the scope of company possibilities when the rights are not regulated by the
legislation have been effective factors. In the context of the Board of Directors, the mission
and vision should be determined clearly; including the distribution of duties of the members
to be elected in the articles of association. In contrast, the absence of independent members in
the board and, therefore, committees, the absence of risk management and corporate
governance committees, the nomination privilege of dominant shareholders and the lack of
cumulative voting system underline the need for significant improvements under this head.

3) a) My organization type is UNIVERSITY. Universities already do distance learning, for

example my BUS 342 Quality management course is online course, so there is no change due
to the Covid-19 outbreak period. Universities use distance learning tools in their core
activities and they invest online technology, so universities are one of the most “survival of
fittest” organizations during Covid-19 outbreak period. Universities are flexible in terms of
changing their core technological, in our lecture notes, core features have more organizational
inertia and and more difficult to change than peripheral features, but in the context of
pandemic lockdown, no incremental change occurs in our university and other universities.
Only midterm exams are held online, but there is an effective infrastructure (Turnitin,
Pearson, Blackboard) of universities to continue to make online exams effectively.
b) Yes, in universities, everybody use Turnitin for online midterms, some schools prefer
Pearson My Lab and some prefer MhEducation for online midterms. This causes isomorphic
universities, it means universities’ tools and technologies are same, they look like same. Some
schools mimicks other schools in terms of uncertainty, this is mimetic isomorphism. For
instance, Özyeğin University declared that they use lockdown browsers to prevent movement
across web pages and prevent copy. After that, Bilgi University uses same method in BUS
274 midterm quizzes. If there is uncertainty, mimetic isomorphism is useful, also it is used in
benchmarking /comparison. On the other hand, YÖK announced that Spring term will be held
online, and all universities obey this rule, this is coercive isomorphism. Some of universities
declared they give students rights to freeze this term, or they make things easier, or some
global schools declared that there is only pass/fail option in this term and students feel relaxed
at their CPA credits, and other universities do the same decisions. This is morally right
decision, I think this is normative isomorphism.

c) Two critical and scarce resources of distance learning are fast internet
connectivity/available internet and available devices to all students (smartphones, PCs,
tablets). Internet difficulties are among the most important problems of students so far
within the scope of distance education. It is stated that the internet quotas of the students are
not enough for them, since there is a video education and it is necessary to download course
materials from time to time. While uniting at the point that distance education is the best
solution at the time of the epidemic, it is stated that the most important problems faced by the
students are the lack of internet and computer.

In terms of buffering mechanism, universities can choose stockpiling option, in this sense
stockpiling means recording lecture videos and put them on the online platforms, students can
click easily whenever they want to listen video recordings. This prevents internet connectivity
problems because everyone enter in the same time in the distance learning platform, there is a
problem. Everybody has smartphones in modern days, so lacking of computers should not be
problem for students and universities. On the other hand, forecasting is another method to
overcome resource dependency of universities to technological devices and internet. Some
instructors (BUS 493 for instance, INT 328) forecast difficulties of connection problems and
lack of devices options, they give students their phone numbers and e-mail and students are
feel free to send the exam results via Whatsapp or they rearrange online exams and give
opportunities to students to make several attempts.